Jean Houston: Jean Houston, Ph.D., has been a leading
figure in the cross-cultural study of spirituality and ritual
processes. A prolific author of books, she is one of the
founders of the Human Potential Movement. Her PBS Special "A
Passion for the Possible" has been widely viewed. When Jean
was 13, she literally ran into an old man on Park Avenue in
New York City on her way to school. After this mishap, they
became friends, and she enjoyed listening to him on various
occasions. At the time she learned to pronounce his name as
"Mr. Thayer." At a much later time, she learned that she had
been talking with Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. Houston earned a
B.A. from Barnard College, a Ph.D. in psychology from the
Union Graduate School, and a Ph.D. in religion from the
Graduate Theological Foundation. She has also been an advisor
to former First Lady and current Senator Hillary Clinton,
during her husband's Presidency. She was deeply influenced by
the work of Joseph Campbell, most notably by "The Hero with a
Thousand Faces." But perhaps her most significant mentor was
Margaret Mead, who was also a personal friend. With her spouse
Dr. Robert Masters, Dr. Houston founded the Foundation for
Mind Research. She is also the founder and chief teacher of
the Mystery School, a program for the cross-cultural study of
spirituality and ritual processes. She has conducted the
Mystery School on both the east and west coasts for more than
two decades. In 1984, she started a national not-for-profit
organization known as The Possible Society to explore new ways
for people to work to help solve societal problems. More
recently, she has also founded the International Institute for
Social Artistry. She is currently working with the United
Nations Development Programme in the new field of social
artistry, training U.N. staff and leaders in certain
developing countries. She has lectured in more than 100
countries and worked intensively in 40 cultures. She has
received many awards for her work.

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